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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: calf · march · pitcher · board · net · swing · saw · ball

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. swing — music
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. board — a committee
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. ball — a dance
  12. march — music
  13. net — after costs
  14. march — the month
  15. march — the month
  16. saw — the tool
  17. board — to get on
  18. saw — the tool
  19. net — in sport
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. swing — in golf
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. net — for catching
  24. swing — to play on

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com